Author Archives: Jeanne Jackson

Karen Wilkinson found a unique group of Coast Lilies. Lilium maritimum is only found in California north of San Francisco. A typical plant has as many as 13 nodding blossoms. But look what Karen discovered. She wrote, “I went to check in on Gentian on the ridge this morning and came across the most prolific Coast Lily plant I've ever seen.  21 open flowers, nine seed pods, and six buds that hadn't opened yet.” That would total 36 blossoms.

I sent Karen’s photo to botanist Peter Baye, and this was something he hadn’t seen before. He wrote, “That's not only exceptional, it's due to a deformation of the shoot tip during early flower bud development. Notice the flattening of the stem near the top? It's a fasciation. In this case, the ‘deformation’ of the shoot tip, or somatic mutation, doesn't affect the individual flowers. This is the only example of this I've ever seen in any native lily! Excellent find. Thanks! And thanks to Karen Wilkinson.”

Thanks to Karen for allowing me to share her photo with  you here, and for showing us something so unusual!

Not much fog this morning and ironically it's cooler, temps in the 60's. There are passing clouds which always adds interest to sky watching!

Cindy Morey has a kind heart. She wrote, “Greetings from Irish beach. I saved a family of Wild Turkeys yesterday near Manchester. I stopped to take a photo just as they crossed the road and was able to stop traffic in both directions so they were safe. I call this photo ‘Follow the Yellow Brick Road.’”

I count eight chicks or poults in Cindy’s photo, along with the mother. Nice work, Cindy!

Thanks to Cindy for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

Once again it was very foggy this morning, with brilliant sunshine in the afternoon. Looking down at Anchor Bay with a friend this afternoon was something special. The blue water sparkled in the afternoon sun, beckoning you to come and play.

We know several Black Bears live on the Mendonoma Coast. The proliferation of motion detector cameras/wildlife cameras gives us a peek at their nocturnal visits - this visit was on July 24, 2024.

Pat Whelan sent in two videos for us to enjoy. Once the bear disappears in the video, you can stop watching. I need to learn how to crop a video - soon!

Bear visit 7.24.24 courtesy of Pat Whelan

Bear leaving 7.24.24 courtesy of Pat Whelan

This sure looks like a healthy bear! Thanks to Pat for allowing me to share her videos with  you here.

Same weather pattern, fog in the morning and mild temps in the afternoon.

 

Loch Michie photographed this adult Brown Pelican as it lifted off from the water.

Adult Brown Pelicans have white heads and brown tummies. Brown Pelicans are so graceful when flying, but they can be comically clumsy when coming in for a landing in water.

These prehistoric-looking birds were severely impacted by the pesticide DDT. It got in waterways where fish ingested it. Birds like the Brown Pelicans ate the fish, and the pesticide residue caused their eggshells to thin. When the mother bird stood (yes, Brown Pelicans incubate their eggs with the skin on their feet) on her eggs, they broke. Their numbers went into a steep decline and we almost lost them. DDT was banned, and these beautiful creatures have recovered in the years since. I think a good rule for we humans would be: Do No Harm.

Thanks to Loch for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Fog over the Pacific Ocean, with warm temps away from the ocean.

Patricia Bacchetti had a Hairy Woodpecker land on a nearby tree and seemingly pose for her.

This is a small woodpecker, but very powerful. It has a look alike, the Downy Woodpecker. One big difference between the two is the beak. In a Hairy, the beak is much longer. Below is a photo of a Downy for comparison, photo taken by Michael Reinhart. See how small the beak of the Downy is?

Hairy Woodpeckers eat insects that they search for on trunks and large branches of trees. They have a short "peek" call, which you can listen to at this link from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology:  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Hairy_Woodpecker/sounds Scroll down to "Calls, Pacific."

Guess what? The Downy Woodpecker has a similar call. Mother Nature sure has a sense of humor at times!

Thanks to Patricia and Michael for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

Very foggy at the coast but sunny just a short ways away. Very mild and lovely today.